Minato's bento
by chquine-harvinellisse
Summary: How long has it been since he had a proper bento in his bag?


**I do not own Persona or anything associated to it...  
**

**4/11/15: I just corrected some of the mistakes... Nothing much... So yeah... XD**

* * *

_Day 1: Onigiri_

Minato opens the bento he found in his bag the moment he opened it for first subject. He kept it hidden from Junpei who would undoubtedly take it from him. How long has it been since he had a proper bento in his bag?

At the underside is a note written in curly calligraphy. Why it's placed on the underside is beyond him but he takes it out and reads it anyway.

_Minato-kun,_

_Stop eating convenience store food. I'll make you food everyday now._

_~Hamuko_

There are two rice balls in the bento and he picks one up and brings it to his mouth.

The rice isn't too hard or too soft, or too dry or too damp; its consistency is nice and the flavor is well-balanced. He figures that she could have been a part of the Cooking Club by that Yamagishi kid from their dorm last year to get this kind of flavor. He finishes the other one quickly.

That evening, Minato finds her washing dishes at the sink and strides over to her purposefully. When she raises her eyes he says:

"Thank you."

* * *

_Day2: Hamburger_

The next day, there's the same bento, but for today, there is something different inside. Junpei was hard to shrug off, but Minato finds the most secretive place in the entire school:

The comfort room.

He covers the toilet with his bag, sits on it and places the made bento on his lap. The smell of hamburger and rice with nori wrapper mixed to it assaults his nose and his stomach. There's a note attached to the underside again and he takes it off to read.

_Minato-kun,_

_I'm glad you liked the rice balls... I couldn't put some vegetables in because I end up turning them to mush. I'll try and improve though._

_Enjoy!_

_~Hamuko_

He breaks his chopsticks and gets one of the hamburger slices. They're a bit tough to chew, but not badly burnt. He wonders if she somehow spaced off while making this for him. She seems to do that a lot lately: space out and forget whatever she's doing before snapping to attention immediately but not quickly enough.

Minato finishes the food and throws his chopsticks away while stowing the bento safely in his bag. He flushes the toilet for good measure and he sees someone else inside. The blue-haired male nods to the other person in the restroom and heads to his class.

Junpei points out the rice still stuck at the corner of his lips and he merely wipes it off.

He catches Hamuko's eye and she smiles at him slightly.

Junpei bombards him with questions when he shamelessly blushes.

* * *

_Day 3: Salted Salmon_

Junpei finally manages to jump on him as he opens his bag for lunch. Minato mumbles something about personal space but the capped male completely ignores him. Questions fly at him like a loaning shark on pay day. But the blue-haired male is everything but affected easily. He opens the bento and sees salted salmon, plain white rice and some diced cucumbers sprinkled with salt and some lettuce leaves.

The class clown is practically salivating at the sight of the salmon, but Minato pushes him away as he takes his lunch to the roof, effectively shutting the other male up. As he opens the door, he notices her auburn hair swaying in the wind.

She looks... _exhausted._

Nonetheless, she turns to him with a smile and he notes how he too feels a bit exhausted.

He sits beside her and sees that she has a similar bento, but his has considerably more content.

The breeze stills and he could swear she's stared at him with pain in her eyes just now.

But... what did he do?

The thought keeps him on his toes as she leaves him with a slight pat on his shoulder.

Something flashes in front of his eyes in between his blinks: she's right beside him with a smile on her face, but that's the last he sees.

That night, when he gets back to the dorm, he takes out the bento again and takes out the note attached to the underside.

_Minato-kun,_

_I hope you like the bento I made you. I wasn't confident about my vegetables so I settled for the easiest ones..._

_I never got them right in the end._

_~Hamuko_

He blinks a bit at the last line and his gaze turns to her as she trudges through the lobby and to the second floor without another word.

* * *

_Day 4: Tamago sushi_

There is no note under the bento today and Junpei is still staring at him in suspicion, because Hamuko, who lives in the same dorm as them has been glancing at him at sporadic intervals during class.

When the lunch bell rings, he starts eating. The egg isn't too sweet and is a bit salty to compliment the slightly and surprisingly bland rice. Junpei has stepped out a while ago and no one else is asking him about his food. He eats slowly, afraid that the egg would just break unceremoniously as he chews. He slightly scolds himself because the tenderness of the egg doesn't matter when one is eating lunch.

That night, he sees her sprawled on the couch and no one else is currently home. It's somewhat nostalgic, but he can't put his finger on it. He gently nudges her awake but when she doesn't move and her breaths come out short and ragged, he realizes that she's actually crying.

He doesn't know what's happening, but there's a heart-wrenching feeling that seizes him as he listens to her sob.

When she falls asleep, he carries her to the third floor where her room is. He notes how pale and thin she is.

He notes, later on when he's on his own bed, that he remembers her being more... filled than that.

But as he thinks, he falls asleep and the next morning, he's sweating and slightly breathless.

Minato looks at the mirror and sees that he too, is a bit pale.

* * *

_Day 5: Mint Dark Chocolate_

_Minato-kun,_

_I realize that it's a bit too late for Valentine's, but here you go..._

_~Hamuko_

This time, Junpei manages to read the note and proceeds to ask what his relationship with the brunette in their dorm is.

Minato shrugs because even he doesn't know. Maybe they do have some sort of relationship and it just slipped his mind.

No; he would not forget anyone he's come to love.

He ponders on what Junpei said as he munches on the bite-sized chocolate pieces nestled on decorative Japanese paper. Some frantic voices are heard from across the hallway and as he approaches, his ears catch a hint of Hamuko's small voice, assuring them that she's fine. Minato places the chocolates in his pocket and when he rounds the corner, he sees her.

Hamuko is on the floor, smiling apologetically at the people around her. She says something about getting help to get to the clinic.

Something stirs in him when he sees her asking for help and he decides to take it from there.

He takes her to the nurse room and casually asks her if she's fine, mentally noting how light she is, like last night.

Instead of answering, she smiles and states her relief that he's eating the chocolates she gave him.

Curious, he asks her how she knows.

She replies that his breath smells like mint. And she knows how the mint she laced in the dark chocolate bites smell like: a bit tangy and sharp, unlike breath mints.

Before she falls unconscious, she says something about being unable to give him anything that year's Valentine's day and the previous year's.

He wants to ask, but the twinge in his chest keeps him from saying anything.

Mr. Edogawa slips a bottle of unknown substances in his pocket, saying something about him looking a bit too out of shape too.

* * *

_Day 6: Yakiniku_

The potato salad is joined with the thin slices of beef. By today, Junpei doesn't bother asking Minato, but the latter will admit that the class clown looks a bit hurt with every brushing off he did. He can't confront the capped male though. He feels as though confrontation is irrelevant.

There's no note again today and when he glances towards her seat at the other end of the room, her head is on her crossed arms and her shoulders are rising and falling softly: an indication that she isn't crying. He decides to keep his silence as he eats the beef slices one by one.

They're too bland and they almost have no taste at all. He opts for the potato salad but it's too mushy and a bit sour. He wonders if it's past expiration date.

He glances at her again before stepping out of the room, bento in hand. He throws it to the nearest trash bin and stares at it in guilt for a moment before making a beeline for the store. He buys a melon bread and winces when he doesn't taste anything reminiscent of melon.

Suddenly he feels guilty about throwing the bento away.

Minato sniffs experimentally but he isn't plagued with a cold.

He stares at the bread and decides to bear with it.

Hamuko is still sleeping on her desk when he arrives and decides to keep away from her the entire day.

* * *

_Day 7: Takoyaki_

She's on the roof again, neglecting the graduation ceremony taking place in the auditorium. If anyone before him came to the place, she'd be caught.

He joins her on the bench and she offers him the remaining three pieces. And politely, he declines. The pancakes he had that morning tasted like nothing even when he drenched it with maple syrup.

Hamuko sets the octopus balls down, container and all, and she moves towards him to make any space between them cease its existence. She leans her head on his shoulder and sighs a shuddering exhale.

He smooths her ponytail, almost apologetically.

Wordlessly, he apologizes.

He apologizes for _forgetting_...

And she smiles, feeling the familiar comfort of his warmth.

Aigis stands to the side, allowing the two of them a bit of privacy and partly to keep them from getting into trouble.

Minato takes her hand, notes how listless and lifeless she is, but he squeezes it anyway. He tells her that it's unfortunate that she has to wait for her chocolates on White Day.

Hamuko says nothing and he leans his head on hers.

He then takes her chin in his hand and tilts her head towards his. He presses his lips against hers for a moment and they part, resuming their original position.

By the time Junpei's voice reaches their ears, he too has gone cold.

* * *

**This came to me on a whim and I typed it out quickly so I can get it out of my head... XD**

**To be honest, I don't know what made me do this... I was just craving for some more Female protag and male protag fics so I tried to contribute... Keyword: tried...**

**Anyway, I love this pair, aside from Shinjiro-Hamuko and Ryoji-Hamuko... I might have failed with the humor and this is pretty drabble-ish... XD**

**So please do not hesitate to leave one and feel free to convey your deepest darkest thoughts regarding the fic as it is greatly appreciated... =D**

**Anyway, thanks for reading this fic~!**

**See you in between pages again! =D**

**chquine_harvinellisse**


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